Operating a company has its challenges. Taking the leap to expand your business internationally can be downright daunting.

But it doesn’t have to be.

Since 2006, VEDP’s Global Network has helped nearly 200 Virginia companies navigate common international obstacles—language and cultural barriers and the like—and provide the services they need to set up shop overseas. The Network removes much of the risk by offering pre-screened, in-country consultants, who, in partnership with VEDP International Trade, deliver industry-specific market research. Recently, the Network expanded into 17 additional countries, including Bulgaria, Turkey, the Netherlands, Israel and South Africa, now providing in-country services in a total of 44 different countries.

Research available ranges from the best strategy for entering a particular market to information on distributors, competitors and potential clients. Once the company visits its target market, the Global Network provides a host of in-country services, including logistical support, matchmaking assistance and service provider contacts.

Nancy Cleveland of LC Technologies in Fairfax used the Global Network to find a reputable distributor in France.LC Technologies has developed a unique technology that uses eye movement to control computers and monitor and record eye motion and related eye data.

“We really could not have found CIMIS [LC Technologies’ new distributor] in France without the help of VEDP’s Global Network,” Cleveland said. “It’s difficult to find good people in other countries, and VEDP has been invaluable in helping us locate CIMIS, a good match for our very specialized technology.”

During these difficult economic times, when U.S. sales are down for many Virginia businesses, it is vital that companies look beyond American borders for sales opportunities.The Global Network provides a familiar, helping hand full of critical and timely information about opportunities in specific industries in 44 target markets. The services are free to Virginia companies up to $3,000 per fiscal year. For more information about VEDP’s Global Network, visit http://www.exportvirginia.org/.

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The Martinsville-Henry County community has reason to celebrate. Monogram Food Solutions, LLC, a meat manufacturer out of Memphis, announced it will purchase the meat snack business of American Foods Group, LLC (also known as Knauss Foods), including the Martinsville production facility. The company plans to invest $3 million to expand production capacity at the Patriot Centre Industrial Park facility. The company has committed to investing every dollar it can in the local economy. More importantly, Monogram Food Solutions has agreed to keep all of the current employees and add 120 new jobs. www.YesVirginia.org

This announcement is like a breath of fresh air for a region that has been wrestling with a double-digit unemployment rate that’s more than twice the national average. Monogram Food Solutions’ average annual salary of about $28,000 is right in line with the region’s prevailing average wage, and 120 new jobs will provide a welcome opportunity for some of the 800+ folks who have been laid off since January 2008. About 50 people have already been hired. Another 70 should be employed by the end of the year.

The job requirements? “Energetic, passionate people who are not afraid of hard work,” was what the company was looking for, according to Ches Jackson, President of Monogram Meat Snacks. They shouldn’t be too hard to find in Martinsville.

LiteSteel was touted for its globality and Canon for its sustainability. Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding was highlighted for its successful supply chain network and Optical Cable Corporation for customization. GE Energy received high marks for leading-edge technology.

Had they paid for that horn-tooting ink in the form of an advertisement it a) would not have had the credibility of a third-party validator such as IndustryWeek behind it and b) would have cost upward of $10,000. Instead, these companies in June gave an hour of their time, some refreshments and a few chotchkies bearing their brand. In return, they received positive coverage in one of the most powerful business-to-business media venues out there thanks to their participation in the Virginia Advanced Manufacturing Media Tour, hosted by VEDP.

VEDP coordinates two media tours annually to bring awareness to industries that are experiencing success across Virginia.While the chief objective of the tour is to promote Virginia as an ideal business location, we also manage to snag a positive headline here and there for participating companies.

Media tours are just one of many ways VEDP works to nurture Virginia’s relationship with its corporate community. A company’s partnership with the Commonwealth doesn’t end when the shovel pierces the Earth. It’s only just beginning. To learn more about partnering with Virginia, visit www.YesVirginia.org.

It makes for a good read. The article underscores Virginia’s efforts to maintain a strong base of power generation from various traditional sources, while a variety of renewable resources and their associated technologies take on a larger share of the power-generation picture.

There’s no doubt the Commonwealth views nuclear as a key pillar of our unique generation and power reliability story. The power of the future belongs to Virginia. Home to three of the top global players in the energy sector (AREVA NP, Babcock & Wilcox and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding) and a plethora of national players, Virginia’s cluster of technology, workforce and corporate businesses positions the Commonwealth as a leader in clean energy and advanced manufacturing of components for the energy sector. The vertical integration of Virginia’s assets—from workforce to real estate to research & development, to regulatory climate and proximity to market—means that energy-related companies can grow in a business climate that is prepared to sustain their competitiveness for the long term.

The article highlights the groundbreaking of the new AREVA Newport News project, a joint venture with Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding to manufacture equipment and pressure vessels for the nuclear industry. Governor Kaine will join AREVA and Northrop Grumman officials later this month for the groundbreaking ceremony in Newport News. Also discussed are several industry firsts that are happening right here in the Commonwealth: Babcock & Wilcox’s plans to develop a scalable, modular game-changing nuclear reactor, Dominion Virginia Power’s plans to build one of the first new nuclear reactors in the U.S. in three decades, and Virginia Commonwealth University is the first state university to add a nuclear engineering track to its masters engineering degree program.

The Commonwealth’s energy sector already employs more than 31,000 people, and Virginia ranks second in the number of nuclear engineers. We see both of those figures growing by leaps and bounds in the coming years, thanks to programs such as PRODUCED in Virginia (Providing Undergraduate Connections to Engineering Education in Virginia) and important strategic investments like that of the Virginia Tobacco Commission toward R&D facilities and research contracts, mainly around energy.

With help from a state interagency energy task force, VEDP is actively seeking project opportunities across the full spectrum of traditional and alternative energy resources. For more information about operating your energy facility in Virginia, visit us at www.YesVirginia.org or contact Mike Carruth at mcarruth@yesvirginia.org.

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Well, it looks like Virginia has done it again. Despite a troubled national economy, the Commonwealth is the top pro-business state for 2009, according to Pollina Corporate Real Estate, a top U.S. corporate site location expert. While Pollina doesn’t have the brand recognition that Forbes does, the organization’s seal of approval carries substantial weight in economic development and site selection circles.

This leading label marks Virginia’s third No. 1 ranking by Pollina. The Commonwealth held the top spot in 2003 and 2007. We ranked second in the Pollina study from 2004 to 2006 and dropped to third place last year. The current recession brings even more importance to Virginia’s climb from third last year to first place.

It means we must be doing something right. The annual study evaluated all 50 states based on 33 factors, including taxes, human resources, right-to-work legislation, energy costs, infrastructure spending, workers compensation laws, economic incentives programs, and state economic development efforts.

Virginia did well in the Labor, Taxes, and Other Factors categories, where we placed fourth overall. Our lead can also be attributed to strengths in college completion, low unemployment, right-to-work status, workers compensation rates, low corporate taxes, low sales and gross receipts taxes, our corporate litigation environment, and low crime rates.

"Virginia maintained its rank for Incentives and Economic Development Agency Factors by having one of the finest economic development departments in the nation, and providing flexible incentives for business creation. A close examination of Virginia’s programs reveals a very well-balanced understanding of economic development," said Brent Pollina, Vice President of Pollina Corporate and author of the study. "The programs include: low-interest loans, infrastructure improvement grants, corporate tax credits, enterprise zone tax credits, customized industrial training and property tax abatements. The Governor’s Opportunity Fund is one example of a program that clearly sets Virginia apart from other states. Virginia’s strength is its ability to front-load some of its key business incentives. This provides companies with capital when they most need it – the first 36 months of a project."

The comments often leave us scratching our heads. During these tough economic times, what is more important than working to bring jobs and investment to the Commonwealth? It’s more important now than ever to be out pounding the pavement in the name of promotion.

International pavement is especially important given that in 2008, international companies were responsible for more than 6,000 new jobs and $1.5 billion of investment in Virginia. The capital investments made by international companies in 2008 increased by more than 84 percent over 2007 and represented the fourth straight year of increased international investment.

VEDP would really like to see that trend continue. Therefore, we plan and budget for overseas marketing missions, an aggressive and pro-active approach to project recruitment and export development that exposes the maximum number of foreign business leaders in a minimum amount of time to the advantages of doing business in Virginia. These trips also enable foreign corporate officials to meet the Commonwealth’s leadership, and provide Virginia’s leadership the opportunity to strengthen their understanding of current financial and business environments overseas.

The Governor’s participation is especially important because he can open doors that VEDP is unable to open on its own. With the Governor at the lead, we meet with CEOs. Without him, we usually end up with someone with very little decision-making power.

These trips are nothing new—Virginia governors have participated on overseas marketing missions for many years.A personal meeting by the Governor with corporate executives demonstrates the high priority that is placed on Virginia’s business community, an important message to relay in a highly competitive market.

We’re thankful we have a Governor who embraces globalism and doesn’t get hung up on the misperception that it means American jobs going overseas. International companies like Volkswagen, AREVA, Canon and Swedwood, all of which have recently brought quality jobs and significant investments to the Commonwealth—are proof of that. They like us, too.

To learn more about the benefits your international company can enjoy in Virginia, visit YesVirginia.org or call us at (804) 545-5600.

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Green is the nation’s new favorite color. It’s on product packaging, splashed across the side of buses, dangling from company tag lines. Now it’s being attached to job categories. Add to white-collar and blue-collar the new “green-collar” job.

As we all know, “green” refers to more than just a color these days. It’s all about the environment, energy efficiency and conservation, and eco-friendliness.

Governor Tim Kaine pointed Virginia in the direction of all things green in September 2007 when he released the Virginia Energy Plan. The plan challenges the Commonwealth to a 40 percent reduction of the rate of energy growth by 2017, and a 30 percent reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, bringing emissions back to 2000 levels.

In December 2008, Governor Kaine launched the Renew Virginia Initiative with the goal of making Virginia a leader in environmental protection and energy conservation and efficiency. The initiative includes legislative proposals to reduce Virginia’s dependency on foreign oil, improve the environment and create “green” jobs.

That’s where we come in. Before the Initiative was launched, Governor Kaine hosted an energy roundtable discussion to hear from executives representing a wide range of alternative energy generation, energy conservation, and research and development companies. They discussed best practices for corporate and university research and development collaboration, incentives, skill sets needed to attract energy project investment, and factors influencing site location of energy production facilities.

With insider information in hand, VEDP is better equipped to assist energy companies in finding solutions to meet their business needs. We understand the importance of having policy support and we have new knowledge about the factors that influence energy-related companies’ location decisions. We get the need for a supportive business climate, and we can deliver.

We’re now working with an interagency task force, made up of relevant state agencies, university partners and federal labs in Virginia to build a compelling case for energy-related businesses’ location to Virginia.

To learn more about what Virginia can offer your energy company, check out our Web site at YesVirginia.org or call us at (804) 545-5600.

Information technology companies that may have glanced at Virginia in the past may want to take a harder look. Virginia now offers a great advantage for IT and the growing cluster of data centers already located throughout the Commonwealth. The Virginia General Assembly recently unanimously passed a bill that enables companies to receive an exemption from the Virginia Retail Sales and Use Tax for computer equipment purchased or leased for use in a data center.

There are a few stipulations, of course. The equipment must be purchased or leased between July 1, 2010 and June 30, 2020. The data center must be located in a Virginia locality and generate at least $150 million in capital investment after July 1, 2009. Last but not least, at least 50 new jobs must be created that pay one and one half times the prevailing average wage in the locality.

This legislation has already proven to be a valuable tool in recruiting and retaining existing data centers. VEDP issued a press release announcing Virginia’s new advantage to industry pubs that generated immediate inquiries.

Moments after the release was sent, Data Center Knowledge headlined the news on its Web site: http://www.datacenterknowledge.com/archives/2009/05/13/virginia-passes-data-center-tax-incentives/. And the phone lines in VEDP’s Business Development Division received multiple calls from companies that read the release. IT and data centers are definitely a strong growth sector of Virginia’s economy. We look forward to continuing to look for ways that assist with financial efficiencies and operational savings for these businesses.

For more information about how VEDP can assist your company, visit us at YesVirginia.org or call (804) 545-5600.

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We’re not sure we belong here, but we’re giving it a shot. We’d like to think VEDP is among cutting-edge state economic development organizations. After all, Virginia has been ranked the “Best State for Business” for three years in a row by Forbes.com. That didn’t just happen.

In times of economic crisis, Virginia needs to be creative with how it delivers its message. We’re often credited for our creativity when it comes to helping companies find solutions to meet their needs. Now it’s time to help ourselves.

Like others, our marketing budget has been slashed and our economic development activity has slowed. But in comparison to other states across the nation, Virginia is holding its own. In fact, the number of announcements, the sector and geographic diversity, and the encouraging ratio of new to expanding economic development projects suggest that Virginia remains a sought-after destination for new business investment.

We intend to keep it that way. If one (free) method of marketing Virginia means venturing out into the unknown world of cyberspace—we’re willing to give it a shot. It remains to be seen if it will help; it certainly can’t hurt.

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About VEDP

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP), a state authority created by the Virginia General Assembly to better serve those seeking a prime business location and increased trade opportunities, provides confidential site selection and international trade services. VEDP's mission: To enhance the quality of life and raise the standard of living for all Virginians, in collaboration with Virginia communities, through aggressive business recruitment, expansion assistance, and trade development, thereby expanding the tax base and creating higher-income employment opportunities.